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### The Preposition à (to / at)

In French, the preposition **à** is used to express going "to" a destination or being "at" a location. When you use **à** with a definite article (*le, la, l', les*), the two words sometimes blend together into a contraction.

### No Contraction: à la & à l'

If the place is feminine (**la**) or starts with a vowel or silent h (**l'**), there is no contraction. You simply use **à la** or **à l'**.

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### The Masculine Contraction: au (à + le)

When a destination is masculine, you cannot say *à le*. Instead, **à** and **le** contract to form the word **au**.

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### The Plural Contraction: aux (à + les)

If the destination is plural, **à** and **les** contract to form **aux**. This is true for both masculine and feminine plural nouns. 

Note that in French, the restroom is always expressed in the plural (**les toilettes**), so you will always use **aux** when talking about going there!

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### Summary Table

Here is a quick reference for combining **à** with definite articles:

| Article | Preposition + Article | Example |
|---|---|---|
| **la** (feminine) | à la | à la pharmacie |
| **l'** (vowel / silent h) | à l' | à l'hôpital |
| **le** (masculine) | **au** | au théâtre |
| **les** (plural) | **aux** | aux magasins |

The preposition to/at (à, au, aux)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Definite articles and elision (le, la, l')

Indefinite articles (un, une)

Identifying vs. describing (c'est vs. il est)

Feminine adjective agreement (+e)

Plural pronouns and 'to be' (nous sommes, vous êtes)

Formal and informal you (tu vs. vous)

Plural nouns and indefinite articles (des... -s)

Plural definite articles (les)

Plural adjective agreement (+s)

Stressed pronouns (moi, toi, lui)

The verb "to have" singular (j'ai, tu as, il a)

The verb "to have" plural (nous avons, vous avez, ils ont)

There is / there are (il y a)

Basic verbal negation (ne... pas)

Negating "there is" (il n'y a pas de)

Regular -er verbs singular (je parle, tu parles, il parle)

Regular -er verbs plural (nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent)

The verb "to be called" (s'appeler)

Yes/no questions with intonation (Tu parles ?)

Yes/no questions with "Est-ce que" (Est-ce que tu parles ?)

Informal questions (qui, que, quoi)

Standard questions (est-ce que)

Singular possessives (mon, ton, son)

Plural possessives (notre, votre, leur)

Demonstrative adjectives (ce, cet, cette, ces)

Adjective placement

Numbers 1 to 20

Numbers 21 to 100

Age and physical states (avoir)

The verb to go (aller)

Question word for location (où)

Prepositions for cities and countries (à, en, au, aux)

The verb to come (venir)

The preposition from/of (de, du, des)

Question word for origin (d'où)

The verb to do/make (faire)

Days of the week (lundi, mardi)

Telling time (il est... heure)

Question words for time (quand, à quelle heure)

The verb to take or have (prendre)

The verb to drink (boire)

Partitive articles (du, de la, de l')

Zero quantity (pas de)

Expressions of quantity (un peu de, beaucoup de)

Asking how much or how many (combien, combien de)

Very vs. a lot (très, beaucoup)

The verb to want (vouloir)

Polite requests (je voudrais)

The verb to be able to (pouvoir)

Obligation (devoir)

General obligation (il faut)

Why and because (pourquoi, parce que)

Expressing purpose (pour)

Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous)

Daily routine verbs (se lever, s'habiller)

Adverbs of frequency (parfois, rarement)

Never (ne... jamais)

Regular -ir verbs (choisir, finir)

Regular -re verbs (attendre, répondre)

Irregular -ir verbs (sortir, partir, dormir)

Informal 'we' (on)

The imperative mood

Direct object pronouns (le, la, les, l')

The near future (aller + infinitive)

The recent past (venir de + infinitive)

The passé composé with avoir

Irregular past participles (eu, été, fait, pris, vu)

The passé composé with être

The negative passé composé (ne ... pas)

Saying goodbye

Please, sorry and thank you

Which / what (quel)

The indefinite adjective (tout, tous)

Irregular feminine adjectives (-euse, -ve)

Double consonant adjectives (-enne, -ette)

Feminine adjective endings (-ère, -trice)

Irregular plurals (-x)

Plurals ending in -al (-aux)

Present tense stem changes (e to è)

Accent stem changes (é to è)

Double consonant verbs (appeler, jeter)

Verbs ending in -yer (payer, envoyer)

Irregular communication verbs (dire, lire)

Irregular action verbs (écrire, mettre)

Knowing facts vs. familiarity (savoir, connaître)

Question	Answer
the university (f)	l'université
I am going to the university tomorrow.	Je vais à l'université demain.
the library	la bibliothèque
This university has a large library.	Cette université a une grande bibliothèque.
I work at the library on weekends.	Je travaille à la bibliothèque le week-end.
the pharmacy	la pharmacie
the hospital (m)	l'hôpital
Are you going to the pharmacy or to the hospital?	Tu vas à la pharmacie ou à l'hôpital ?
This hospital and this pharmacy are very modern.	Cet hôpital et cette pharmacie sont très modernes.
the airport (m)	l'aéroport
They are going to the airport without me.	Ils vont à l'aéroport sans moi.
I find this airport very spacious.	Je trouve cet aéroport très spacieux.
the mall	le centre commercial
Are you going to the mall with them?	Tu vas au centre commercial avec eux ?
There is a new mall here.	Il y a un nouveau centre commercial ici.
the theater	le théâtre
We are going to the theater tonight.	Nous allons au théâtre ce soir.
This old theater is very beautiful.	Ce vieux théâtre est très beau.
the gym	le gymnase
My brother plays tennis at the gym.	Mon frère joue au tennis au gymnase.
This gym is for the students.	Ce gymnase est pour les étudiants.
to the, at the (plural) / with (flavoured with, in dish names) / with (having as a feature)	aux
the restroom	les toilettes
The child is going to the restroom.	L'enfant va aux toilettes.
Where is the restroom?	Où sont les toilettes ?
I often go to the concerts with my friend.	Je vais souvent aux concerts avec mon ami.
We are going to the stores to buy fruit.	Nous allons aux magasins pour acheter des fruits.
the post office	la poste
I am going to the post office.	Je vais à la poste.
The post office is in this street.	La poste est dans cette rue.
the middle school	le collège
My son goes to middle school.	Mon fils va au collège.
The middle school is in the village.	Le collège est dans le village.
the police officer	le policier
The police officer works in the street.	Le policier travaille dans la rue.
Is the police officer here?	Est-ce que le policier est ici ?
the pupil, the student (m)	l'élève
This pupil goes to the university.	Cet élève va à l'université.
The pupil works with the teacher.	L'élève travaille avec le professeur.

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